Bitcoin Grows Up

Oh come on. Is bitcoin growing up? The very fact that Bloomberg, the WSJ, & Forbes are now covering it in their almost daily writings just screams YES. Well, maybe not all grown up yet but I think we can safely say bitcoin has just become a “teenager”. Hmmmmm, that’s loaded for comments.

It’s been around for years, it’s known worldwide, it’s become a recognizable name and now it is becoming a serious asset class too. It’s bitcoin. The price swings are still pretty extreme but less volatile than in years past which is a sign of maturity and markets are becoming more efficient with more “players”. Another validation and sign of “maturity” is the commitment of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) with its partner Crypto Facilities to further develop the bitcoin market.Here’s an excellent read. (Bill Taylor/CEO)

"Bitcoin is showing signs of becoming a serious asset class.

Last week's price swings hardly back up that assertion. The cryptocurrency dropped 7.8 percent on Thursday after news that the People's Bank of China threatened to shut exchanges that violate money-laundering rules. The announcement also prompted some of the biggest websites operating bitcoin in the country to halt withdrawals, limiting them to converting the digital coin to yuan and depositing it in local banks.

For all the volatility, though, there are indications that bitcoin is acting more grown up. Go back to December 2013, when the PBOC intervened after the cryptocurrency reached a record high of $1,137. It then dropped 51.4 percent in a week, only to bounce back about 70 percent in the next two days and fall below $600 in another week. Bitcoin then settled into a slow descent to $183 by January 2015.

Bitcoin's wild swings hardly make it look like a mature market, but it's calmer than it was three years ago

The latest swings followed a similar pattern. As soon as bitcoin breached $1,000, the Chinese authorities got involved and the price plunged. Last week, once again, that level was pierced, and once more the central bank entered the fray. On Monday, the price was little changed at $1,003."